released December 21, 2021

It’s just a lot (v1)
Composed & Recorded by Hunter Lewis (Luke Jr)
I sit and look at my phone. I think, and try to stop. I think we’re back in the early 2000’s. Like with Crazy Frog. Y2k is back in a big way. I want a flip phone, I deserve a big flip phone. One with lots of buttons. I spend a lot of time in my room. I hear the same things happen outside every day. They cycle and build. Each with its own purpose. But they kind of just go on at the same time. Some things drive and connect to others. But the scene is set by some power outside itself.

Motions
Composed & Recorded by Andrew Poccia
Motions aims to create a surreal but structured listening experience through elements of electronic instruments, field recordings, as well as traditional acoustic and electric instrumentation. I was inspired by our use of electronic synthesizers this semester and the abstract sounds that can be created with them. The goal of this piece is to combine some of those obscure elements of electronic instruments with some of my own styles of drumming and guitar playing.

Storm
Composed & Recorded by Vicente Cabreros
So, my final project track is called “Storm” and I originally wrote it to be an industrial sort of futuristic sounding kind of track with electric guitars, synthesizers, drums, and bass but as I was writing this song, it seemed to have evolved quite a bit to something more than I imagined. I never expected the song and the riff writing for the guitars and bass to come out so aggressive sounding. My original idea was just to write a new instrumental song in the format I know I’m most comfortable with, but I decided to mess around with some synthesizer plugins in my DAW, intending to discover new sounds that work well with the track. I was very pleased with the result. I think as a writer and composer, I believe judging from my last project in electro acoustic II, I’ve realized I have a very regimented style of writing and composing the way I do. That style of writing always starts with a guitar riff then a bass riff and then adding drums. I hope in the future I’ll learn how to implement vocal melodies into what I write because aside from being proud of the instrumentals that I create, I always felt that there was something missing. That missing link is vocals.

Space Flakes
Composed & Recorded by Nicholas Procaccini
My goal for this was to compose a piece of music using MIDI software instruments as well as “real” instruments like guitar and bass guitar and create a piece that catered to no specific direction. When composing I always feel compelled to make something that fits into a category. I’ve found this way of thinking to be restrictive when it comes to the creative process. I have had an easier time making music with other people because there’s more influence and openness. When it comes to making music without others I find it challenging, thus why I chose to do this.

Boss Canyon
Composed & Recorded by Francesco Pillitteri
With the help of my new pedals, I plan to have fun with the new effects. As a metal guitarist, I usually don’t use much past distortion and reverb. My multi-effects pedals have so much that I just don't use, so my goal will be to use the things I don't use too often. It will help get more comfortable with the parts I usually avoid to force me out of my comfort zone, but in a fun way. I just want to jam to a couple of different ideas I had with the help of a looper, and bring in the techniques that I love to do. It has been tough for me to have fun with music when I spend so much time on it for most classes, so I'm using this as an opportunity to rediscover how much fun music can be.

Les Pensées
Composed & Recorded by Pamela Husbands
This composition is about thoughts. While working on a previous project, I was deliberating on how best to arrange the sounds to get the effect that I wanted to hear, and I was impressed by the many thought processes that went into composing a piece. I asked myself, what if I can represent those thinking processes with sounds? Therefore, Les Pensées is about “Composing Music by Your Thoughts.” Sounds in this piece includes water splashing against a rock, drums, piano pieces, and a very short voice section.

Layers
Composed & Recorded by Andrew Serrato
This piece combines different textures, frequencies, and effects that are stacked in dense layers. The different layers blend together and crate a wall of sound that almost has a mind of its own. The piece is mostly improvised, which allows for different outcomes every time, but despite this, the dense and chaotic nature of the piece always prevails.

Les Deux Mondes
Composed & Recorded by Tariq Allen
Les Deux Mondes is comprised of two parts: A and B. While composing this piece in Brooklyn, NY, Tariq started a new marriage. This piece describes his new lifestyle of infinite power and possibilities through marriage. Within the first ten days of being married, Tariq felt the urge to dig deep down and create something fresh and new. Field recordings, airplane noise, and voice memos were all used together to create a unique series of sounds. Inspired by ambient music and avante-garde jazz, Tariq illustrates the reverberations formed by two lovers by two worlds.

Interview at 7AM
Composed & Recorded by Meagan Ruan
This composition is based on a serious video game design project. The game educates players by teaching many elements of coding and debugging. The user plays as a student and the goal of the game is to answer as many questions correctly to defeat bosses and win the game. As the student progresses, the bosses and questions get significantly more difficult. I have created this piece thinking about the students and their struggles to succeed in a coding career. There are elements of the typical school bells that appear in the piece since the game revolves around the student.

Fashion Excerpt
Composed & Recorded by Janae Laster
This is a piece influenced by the global fashion and dance hall scene. Words commonly used by the French are included in this piece in order to capture the significance of European influence on the fashion scene. A model travels through a narrow runway surrounded by observers pleased to be in their presence. Escalation between synthesizers and uplifted beats dissolving into a calmness echoing with pace guiding subjects into a universe where their ego is released within the mind influencing the presence around them.

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Composed & Recorded by Zhengfeng Lin
What inspired me is the hip-hop music in China where it is a mainstream music since 2017. I wanted to make this because I am really interested and wanting to become one as well. Sounds used are some free downloaded drum sample packs I found online.

THE BEST OF THREE WORLDS
Composed & Recorded by Samuel Castro
“The Best of Three Worlds” is a piece that I've made that is intended to truly enhance a Christmas vibe and almost like an end theme (keeping in mind it’s for the end of the semester). It’s a Christmas song that really strives to portray the different feelings and sentiments we experience throughout the holidays. One of the things that have facilitated me to reach such a goal is the constant presence of bells hitting in each measure. I also added some trumpets to make an emphasis on just how chaotic but beautiful this time of year can be. Something that also contributes well with the theme of the song, is the faint background recording of people going into stores and the hectic footsteps trying to grab the last toy everyone is looking for. I hope you guys enjoy it!

In Contrition
Composed & Recorded by Liam MacDonald
A piece of independent dance music written using synthesizers and samples. Inspired by burgeoning trends in bass music and the ethereal soundscapes of artists like Porter Robinson and Nicholas Miller, this performance is made possible by the use of multiple MIDI controllers and incorporates original visuals influenced by the technophobia of late 90s sci-fi and fantasy. This project was influenced by the ever-growing dance music scene, and the incredible efforts of independent artists to overcome the recent pandemic and continue developing the artistry of virtual live performances.

Classi in Ab Major
Composed & Recorded by Amberley Canegitta
This piece takes a traditional string quartet in sonata form and flips it on its head by introducing electronic elements. The exposition and development stick to the true nature of a string quartet, but the recapitulation is where the electronic elements are experimented with, helping expand the original idea of the piece by introducing something new.

Polar Express Score
Composed & Recorded by Jaylen Brissett
The sounds that I'm using to make this piece are ghost piano, drums, bells, flute, bass, mixed choir, recorder, synths and saxophones. I was inspired to write this piece because Christmas is my favorite holiday, and The Polar Express is an amazing movie in my opinion. I added in the choir because choirs tend to be a huge part of Christmas music. I added in a ghost piano because of the ominous tone that each note gave off. When making the beat, I drew heavy inspiration from Carol of the Bells because it gives off a very ominous tone. I wanted to go this route because Christmas songs are known to be very cheerful.